PIME VANI-2020 "THE CHANGING EXPRESSION OF FAITHFUL WITH THE NEW FACE OF CHURCH"
Editor's Desk....
Greetings and well wishes from PVB Community.
Dear Friends, we the PVB Community is delighted to present you the Issue “The changing Expression of faithful with the new face of church”. We present this issue, exclusively through online.
As we have seen the new face of Catholic Church in its expression of faith, is always new and dynamic. The lock down forced the faithful to remain in their house. This pandemic also has paved a new face of expression of faith in the Catholic Church. In this year we will have two publications online. Eventually we thank all those who have contributed their valuable insights to the above said topic, especially our seminarians from PVB and all the great PIME Missionary around the world.
Dear readers this issue we dedicate to Fr.Jeevan for his wonderful services to the PVB community in Pune. We also request you to remember him in yours prayers so, that God may assist him throughout his priestly life.
We also give thanks to Fr. John the rector of PVB in Pune and the spiritual director Fr.Bhakthinath for their full support and encouragements.
Bro. Ratnakar
Fr. Anand Mikkil
(Missionary In Ivory Coast)
The given theme: “The changing expression of faithful; with the new face of Church”, has provoked my intelligence and awakened certain things in my heart:
a) It has put me in a crisis: namely linguistic crisis. I took time; let’s say some days, to understand it completely according to the intentions of the formulator. This kind of crisis is relatively possible, due to irregular use of English in my simple daily life. It makes me confess, that I have not done enough of justice to the course of Epistemology and Hermeneutics during my philosophical formation, which affects my comprehension and interpretive understanding of certain subjects. Dear brothers, do not do the same error that I made!
b) Faithful may change, they may change their ways of expression of their faith. The entire system of expression of faith may change. Why not? But, thank God, the FAITH doesn’t change. It does not change like God, as it comes from God. It doesn’t change, like Truth, because God is Truth. The church may have new or old faces (phases); but Church in its origins and integrity, remains the same. The Church is people of God. By faith, they become the Body of (to) the Risen Christ. In this sense, the Church remains the same, irrespective of the old or new faces (Phases). Therefore, let’s breathe easily.
c) The above mentioned theme has thrown a light on one of the images that are stuck in the darkroom of my memory. Here is the image:
Have a glance at it and keep its provocations alive for the later part of my presentation.
At the end of the above immediate and instinct reactions to the theme, I suppose that it’s talking about “change” and “unchanged”.
What is Change?
It could be a verb, where it means “to make or become different”. At the same time, it could be a noun too, where it’s understood as “an act through which something becomes different or Money Coins”.
One of my friends says, and he says it very often: “Man has to change, whereas animals not necessarily”. Change is good. Probably this would be the very reason why man prefers to change, while animals don’t tend towards change so easily or willingly. Let’s not forget that the rolling stone gathers no mass. Who wants to be in the mass? Obviously, when I say or talk about “change”, I purely mean, a change which is positively progressive. When we talk about the changing expressions of the faithful, let’s intend it in this positive sense of progressive.
When I read about “changing expressions of faithful”,I do ask myself, if this is the faithful who is changed and in his turn, has changed the expression of faith? Or it’s just expression of faith that’s been transformed by the unchanged faithful? If it’s just a change in expression of faith, then we don’t need to worry much, we would rather need to worry, if it’s the faithful who is changed. It would be worse, from the religious point of view, if the change in the faithful is negative.
If the changing expression of faithful with the new face of church is negative and defying, then we should worry and work up on this “change” to transform into a positively progressive one!
How?
a) Before I could answer myself “how”, I would ask myself, “should all the problems in the world necessarily have a solution?” It’s good, if there is a solution, it’s still better, if there is no problem at all. “When certain problems don’t have a solution,what is our immediate reaction or responsibility?” In our present world, I would note many problems, some of them, like some incurable sickness, are still waiting for a concrete and permanent solution. What shall we do? We should learn the art of “Living with”. One should know how to live with ones’ problems. Whatever the situation that could be: such as a Sickness or a situation of not having the possibility of practicing the faith along with others. Certainly by “Living with”, we don’t quit from working for a solution, without losing Hope. This art becomes already a positively progressive change to the negative change that took place in our life without our permission.
b) While living a bad experience with covid-19, in all its aspects, almost everyone is hoping and praying that the situation becomes “Normal” like before. But some responsible people believe that it’s the “Normal” life-style which has caused this pandemic. A life-style which is more selfish than generous…more accumulating than sharing…more abusing the nature than caring…more egoistic than common good. Going back to “Normal” life with this unchanged mindset and inbuilt attitude, would it help anyone in any way? Would it bring betterment or make future worse? Let’s take “Normal” life of yesterday, let’s edit it today for a better tomorrow.
c) The narration of “Jesus walking on the water” from the gospel according to St Mathew 14, 22-33, underlines the ‘Hide and Seek’ game of ‘fear and faith’. Through this episode, St Peter represents the whole humanity – the humanity which is enthusiastic in reaching Jesus, even at the cost of sinking in the water. The fact that, the man is an emotional being, irrespective of the quality of the faith, certain emotions play a predominant role in one’s life. One of the most important emotions is ‘Fear’. As long as faith was at front gear, man was courageous and he was walking on water. He was not just walking, he was walking on the water and he was reaching Jesus. But once the fear dominates the faith, man starts drowning in the water. It would be worse if the fear dominates your faith. In front of the huge changes in the world, in the Church, in the way of expressing the faith, ‘Don’t be afraid, keep faith still alive! Don’t be afraid, even this change is going to be changed. Don’t be afraid, because Jesus has already won the world! (Jn16:33).
The positively progressive change is possible, by learning the art of ‘Living with’, by correcting the normality of yesterday and by not losing the faith and hope!
Let’s go back and have a general look at the image which I have proposed in the beginning. What it says? Is the Man looking for some coins or is the man hoping for change? When I look at the image, from my point of view, with my limited knowledge and experience, it unfolds two things: 1) Man is asking ‘changed people’ to drop coins, 2) Man is also warning the ‘unchanged’ people to change. The one who responds to this man, by saying ‘no change’, he affirms that he has no change (coins) and he has no change in him. When there is no change in man, no change can bring change in the one who begs and in the one who gives. I leave this image as my response to the given theme: “The changing expression of faithful, with the new face of church.” The change is the only remedy to the Change that we are living currently.
Let me conclude my sharing by affirming once again: “Change is good, when it’s positive and progressive, irrespective of all its expressions. Don’t be afraid! Church is good, when the Spirit is in Action, irrespective of its faces (phases): have still faith!
Take Heart: Christ is Alive
Bro. Narendro Nayak (II Year Philosophy)
Albert Camus, French existentialist, the atheist declares “I can’t believe in a God who would allow innocent children to suffer”.
Amidst the din and destruction of lives and of course the world by the unseen and tiny virus left the people with surreal questions; is Christ alive? Is He still active in healing the sick, comforting the suffering and restoring the faith? Does He do still if so, how? Who can testify it? Who can battle against their death for victory of eternal life? Why is Christ’s body closed? Who can unfold it and proclaim Christ is still alive and active?
Today we experience the deviation of expression of faith from its original way. All have stopped coming to the church, which was once a nurturing of faith and reviving of humanity with love and care through its teaching. Now the sense of humanity seems to have been fading away and evaporating from our lives. For, the fright of death has gripped us in way that led us to confine ourselves into the safest zone than outreaching to the wounded ones. The prevalent of suffering and death spawned by vague virus now seems to have been surmounting over life. All seems to have dispersed in quest of their individual life that is why; we find homeless, hungry and migrants’ ones left without hope. The trust in the Lord is vanishing and is now condensed into the fear of death that Jesus once defeated at his resurrection. All that we now witness and see of this time on the surface of this earth is a glaring end of humanity and a rise of an acute pain and anguish which brings life into the termination.
Today this terrific plight offers us a challenge to say, the way prophet Isaiah said “here I am Lord for your people”. Humans need to ignite their humanity into life to bring hope in the hopeless, bring light in the darkness and gather the scattered with the dignity. The time is not awaiting us but has reached us now. We need to step out of our comfort zone to touch the hearts of needy keeping Christ as the center of us who taught us to become the epitome of his living presence. When suffering arrives, it does not mean Christ is not living He is dead but it means we participate in His suffering so as to bring the liberation to the world and to its people. All of us have an inner drive to chase our life for happiness not realizing that it takes us far away from our own people. We even don’t bother of our own people’s presence. But when problems and sadness hit us, we value each other’s presence and support. It helps us to gather us together and make us become one.
Christ is not dead. He is still alive in every person who concerns others and who gives support to others in all the way. Here is a story of a boy who had dreamt of becoming an agent of happiness to his parents as they would make a lot of sacrifice for his studies and all that he requires. But the dark cloud above never stopped following him. He met an accident which took away two of his eyes and shattered all of his dreams and hopes, leaving in him the pain of becoming burden to his parents. But his parents never lost hope on him. They had formidable faith that his son would bring in them happiness. The boy in his desperation found interest in listening and singing songs. Seeing his sheer persistence in singing songs, his father takes him to the voice of India programme. As he arrives to the stage a very odd silence falls to the surroundings, striking odd surprises to the audience and to the judges that brought by the appearance of his lost two eyes. All he had with then was his parents’ supports, his struggles and his voice that the world needed. His voice was exquisitely good at his performance which awestruck to the audience as well as to judges. All of them had broken down with tears after having heard of his struggles and his voice. All judges ran towards him and embraced him in a way that made him to feel all are with him. That’s how the boy’s parents through their support to their son proclaimed how Christ is alive and active. And all that happened to them was just a moment of time for them to take heart.
We need to unlock the locked hearts, which Jesus has made His church, at the knocks of cries of others and embrace them as Christ embraces us. Our involvement in suffering of others should proclaim the ever-living Christ and ring His words “Take Heart, it is ‘I’ do not be afraid” - (Mk 6:5). Our self-denial should give rise to many lives as Jesus portrayed at His time. This pandemic did not scatter us but brought us together. It did not close the church but has opened the new churches in every house and in every hearts. It did not deprive of our faith in Christ but rather deeply strengthened our faith to depend on Him more and more. It now tells us how important and nice to live together. It now seems to have given the water to the withered and to the dying humanity, which is in us to live.
It is the time for the fear to die and to raise the hope. It is the time for the Darkness to vanish and to pave way for the appearance of the light. It is the time for the Doubt to become servant and to make master the faith. And it is the time for all the religious people to become an agent of Christ to restore the faith, construct the lives of the broken ones and infuse their lives with an enduring love, joy and happiness. All need to realize through their faith that the destruction we now experience of this time is only to know His living presence in the sufferings and become part of His struggle in liberating the world. So, let’s take heart and believe it is He who is with us and behind of us.
“He who loses his life for my sake finds it and he who finds his life loses it” says the Lord.
CHALLENGE CHANGED US
By. George Kiro (Spirituality)
Oh magnificent beauty of change You change us to have a serene mind,
That challenge embraced us to stop violence on the mother earth,
Oh challenge you taught us to respect the dignity of one's life,
Thus, we deserve to be challenged.
Oh marvelous change, you changed the physical touch of Eucharistic Lord,
that changed the family's to built a divine nature of God,
Oh that changed us to look more deeper into God's holiness,
Thus, we deserve to be challenged.
There is intense joy in seeing the smile in our family,
There we experience joy which leads to share,
There comes a healing of our attitude towards everything,
Thus, we deserve to be challenged.
Denduluru to Bengaluru (B.O.S.C.O)
Pavan Kumar (Spirituality)
“I realized that regency is something that it teaches me many things to carry with me in my life. It gave a chance to explore what I learned throughout my formation (from orientation to philosophy). It became an instrument through which I became conscious that I am not here by chance but by choice of Him, where my responsibility towards His choice cannot be neglected”. I feel this one year of regency is part of my life in growing authentic formation. Now at present I am doing my year of spirituality, it’s helping me in understanding the other without judging, growing in patience day by day, care for the other in need and above all persistence in relationship with God (personal prayer) irrespective of busy schedule.
My physical preparation for my regency began from my home town Denduluru. I began my journey on May 31st and reached Bengaluru on June 1st at 12:00 pm. I had my experience with Salasian fathers under the project BOSCO (Bengaluru Oniyavara Seva Coota) which means ‘Young at risk in the streets of Bengaluru’. This is the main work these Salasian Fathers do with the help of lay people as their staff for this project.
Many youths and children who are very much vulnerable to the addiction of illicit activities are rescued in the streets of Bengaluru and brought to Bosco centers, in which they are looked after. I was put in one of the main centers Bosco Yuvakendra where many rescued children were brought in. It was difficult for me to handle them in the initial stage, since; it was the first time I was put in charge for taking care of these kinds of children in my life. As days went on I would able to understand their background and eventually put a full stop in judging them. The regent is put here (besides many reasons) because he should be a guiding principle for these children in growing well-disciplined citizen and in promoting goodness in oneself and in others. So for this reason I said that what I learned in my formation helped me to explore in regency.
When I looked back at the end of my regency indeed I felt very happy for the wonderful experience that I had. Yes, Of course there were many struggles, difficulties and worried activities but all these taught me to stand firm when they come in future.
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